


In The Stillness

by ByTheDawn



Series: Stolen Moments [2]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F, First Kiss, Kissing, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-07
Updated: 2013-12-07
Packaged: 2018-01-03 22:07:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,483
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1073612
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ByTheDawn/pseuds/ByTheDawn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Requested work with the prompt: "Emma and Henry fell asleep in front of the TV, Regina came over to throw blanket at them. She kissed Henry head and unconciously kissed Emma’s as well. Emma woke up." - <a href="http://incognitobey.tumblr.com/post/69245256182/someone-please-fic-this-pre-sq-emma-and-henry">incognitobey</a></p>
            </blockquote>





	In The Stillness

Regina’s fingers briskly searched for her keys in her shoulder bag. She was annoyed, tired, and positively starving; being the Mayor of Storybrooke had always been a challenge, but it was becoming more and more of a chore. Today’s meetings for arts and fairs funding combined with deadlines on budgets and acquisitions had led to a fourteen hour workday at the office and if she was honest, she really should put at least another two in before going to bed. Seeing it was now ten PM and she was about to face Henry’s more than frustrating biological mother—whom she had been forced to call when all her meetings ran late and there was no possible way she was going to be able to pick Henry up from school let alone provide him with dinner and take him to bed—Regina doubted she would be in bed before two AM. The thought alone darkened her already dark mood.

Finally finding her keys, Regina opened the door to her home and found the place shadowy and deserted. Frowning, she stepped inside and shut the door behind her quietly, ears perked to get a grasp of the situation. She had called Emma around four in the afternoon and left her with clear instructions not to leave Regina’s son alone in the house under any circumstances. Yet, she was confronted with what seemed like an empty house. She crossed the hallway quickly and headed up the stairs to check for her son in his bedroom, but found the area deserted. Would Emma—despite Regina’s meticulous instructions to take Henry to the Mayor’s house—have taken him to her ratty apartment? She fumbled for her phone as she hurried downstairs, unlocking it just as she saw the flickering of static in the downstairs TV room from her perch on the stairs.

Her worry and anger lifted some as she caught sight of the glow; perhaps Henry was here after all, safe and sound and in his own home. She headed into the room briskly as she let her phone slip in her bag once more but was stopped by the scene that awaited her. Emma was lying on the couch, not so much in a graceful manner but sprawled over it in a way Henry was known to do when he was completely at ease. She was obviously asleep and her face was so unguarded that Regina couldn’t even get mad at the fact that one of her booted feet was firmly resting on her expensive leather couch. Emma’s arm was draped around Henry, who had managed to wedge himself between the couch and Emma’s body and was lying with his head on her shoulder. He too was deep asleep.

The similarities in their peaceful faces was so apparent that the sharp stab of jealousy and fear that always accompanied witnessing their interactions was dulled out somewhat with a warmth that came over Regina’s heart. She might not want Emma here, or in Henry’s life at all, but in the darkness and quiet of her own home she could admit—if only to herself—that Henry’s life was enriched by having his birth mother here for him. He had someone to pick him up when she couldn’t make it, and play with him in the way she had never been able to because she was the Mayor and former Queen and because all her life she had been expected of to be _more_ , _better_. Emma allowed him to eat the junk she would never allow him, and with her, he could share his wonderfully creative mind in a way their interactions as of late did not allow him to. To him, she was the Evil Queen, and Emma was the Savior. The comfort he had found in her arms once, he now found in hers. It was a painful realization, but one she could stomach because in the face of a truth about to consume their lives—Regina had no doubt the curse would end eventually, and that Emma would be the undoing of it—she knew she would not be allowed to care for Henry for much longer, and he would need a mom.

She had made peace with the fact that she would lose her son in light of the impending end of the curse, but she would never stop fighting for him, and she would never allow harm to come to him. If Emma was her only way to assure his happiness, she could deal with the blonde woman in their lives. 

Her emotions threatened to overwhelm her, so she busied herself by quietly stepping out into the hallway to take a blanket out of the hallway closet. She set her bag down, stepped out of her heels, and patted back inside the room quietly. She found the remote, put the television set to stand-by and crossed slowly to the couch, a soft smile on her features. Regina could be selfish, but when it came to Henry, she always wanted what was best for him. She had always assumed that what Henry needed most was her, but right now, that was Emma. She gently placed the blanket over the two sleeping forms, careful not to disturb their slumber. 

Lowering herself onto her knees, she leaned forward to kiss her son’s soft hair. Careful not to touch Emma, she was still overcome by her scent as she leaned in so close to her and she had to shut her eyes against the emotions her unique scent invoked. With her lips still pressed to her son’s temple, Regina inhaled deeply, finding much in common in the unique scent of mother and son. 

It was unfair, Regina thought, that of all the women in this world who could have been Henry’s mother, Emma was not only the woman meant to be her undoing, but also the holder of her heart. Regina would never admit it—she would rather tear out her heart like her mother had done—but somewhere between passionate fights and murder plots, Regina had come to not only rely on Emma to take care of her son, but had realized that besides her son, Emma had become the only person in the world who could make or break her day with a single glance or word. When Emma smiled at her, her heart soared; when Emma asked her to do something, she did, and when Emma rejected or fought her, there was no greater pain—even thought the blame for their fights was often hers alone. Regina had fought it—was still fighting it—but there was no escaping the desire in her heart: she had fallen for Emma, and it made everything so much worse. Her pain and the impossibility of their situation—especially combined with the obliviousness of the blonde—was enough to make Regina go off at the drop of a hat. Any smidgen of anger, worry, or affection from the other woman was rejected vehemently, immediately, to shelter her own fracturing heart.

Henry shifted minutely, and Regina pulled back quickly, not wanting him to wake up, and above all not wanting to be caught, but she wasn’t fast enough. Henry was still asleep, but as she straightened, she heard Emma groan softly, and her breath ghosted over her face. She turned her head as her heart hammered in her chest. She froze as Emma’s eyes fluttered open and focused on her, so close but divided by what seemed like millennia of history. She couldn’t move, couldn’t straighten. Emma’s breath burned on her skin, and Regina could only gasp lightly in the darkness as she willed her face to become void of the emotions she knew she was broadcasting. It was no use, though: Emma could see through her almost from day one—Regina was sure of that.

“Regina?” Emma’s voice was soft and dark with disuse of sleep. Green eyes found hers and Regina was lost. There was no fear in those eyes, no anger, nothing but an openness that made Regina desire to fall into them. They sought each other’s eyes until the inevitability of their situation became too pressing. Emma broke the contact first; eyes fluttering down to Regina’s parted lips as she licked hers subconsciously. Regina knew she should pull away, should move, should tap into her eternal reserve of anger and break this treacherous moment. Yet her heart was pounding too quickly, her mouth was too dry, and the constriction in her throat too tight to be ignored. Once more locking eyes with Emma, Regina slowly bent down, looking for signs of resistance and finding none. Emma’s breath once more ghosted over her lips and Regina sighed. In the quiet of this sheltered moment in time that was beyond all pretence, she was going to kiss Emma Swan—Savior, mother to her son, nemesis—and Regina couldn’t stop herself. 

Emma’s eyes closed just before Regina’s lips connected with hers and she whimpered slightly as Regina pressed down lightly. Emma’s free hand sliding up over her side and shoulder until she could tangle into dark hair left a line of fire on Regina’s body as she reveled in the softness of Emma’s lips. Her lips were warm and made of velvet that parted under her to encourage Regina to delve deeper. With her son blissfully unaware not a few inches away, Regina gave into temptation. She parted her lips and let her tongue delve deeply into Emma’s mouth. Even the inside of Emma’s mouth was warm and welcoming and the sensation of Emma’s tongue moving up to lap against her own sent spikes of dizzying arousal and need through the brunette’s frame. Emma moaned deep in her throat and Regina drank in the sound as she brought a hand up to cup Emma’s face. Neither of them moved more than that, just reveling deeply in each other. Henry couldn’t wake up to this—that was a certainty they didn’t even have to vocalize. Yet, they could not break away. 

Now she had this, Regina needed more of it. She needed this to last, to never stop, because if they stopped then reality would crowd in on them and everything would change. Regina would lash out in fear and vulnerability and Emma would try to fix it until Regina finally went too far and she would eventually give up. Then all of this would be buried with memories of past regrets and nothing would be left to cling to. Regina’s heart would break again—over and over—every time she laid eyes on the blonde, because she had been with her for one glorious moment but would have lost her because of her inability to love anyone in the way they should be loved.

And so the moment passed; with a final soft peck, Regina pulled back as much as Emma’s hand on the back of her neck would allow. She kept her eyes closed, unable to face Emma right now—feeling too vulnerable and too tainted by her own dark thoughts.

“Look at me.” Emma pleaded in a whisper and like always, Regina complied. A shudder tore through her at the darkening of Emma’s eyes and the way they relentlessly searched her own. Emma’s breathing was labored and her fingers were still running through Regina’s hair. Regina choked out a sob as her emotions crowded her. Panic rose in her and threatened to overtake her until Emma pulled her down into another deep kiss that paralyzed all her thoughts. She fell into it—into Emma—only restraining herself because of their son’s presence. This time when they broke away, the panic still simmered inside of her but did not stop her from lying her head down on Emma’s available shoulder, trying to get her breathing and emotions under control. Emma placed a lingering kiss in her hair as her hand still pressed her close to her.

“I’ve been wanting to kiss you for months now…” Emma admitted with a note of amusement at the ridiculousness of their situation. Regina tilted her head to kiss Emma’s neck. Her scent was so strong here, so overwhelming, that it stole Regina’s ability to talk. It was alright, though; Emma’s words were enough to keep her here in this limbo of companionable dark silence. It was a silence that was rudely shattered when Henry suddenly awoke.

“Mom…s?” he asked confused, adding the last syllable as an afterthought when his inquisitive but barely opened eyes found his dark haired mother in Emma’s arms. Regina stiffened, panic rising for a moment until Emma flexed the muscles in her arm to keep Regina pressed into her shoulder and neck. It was a promise that the blonde would handle this, and Regina allowed her to as she held her breath. She could feel Emma’s head tilt to the side so she could regard their young son.

“It’s okay, kid.” Emma said softly, placing a kiss on his head. “Go back to sleep.” She added and Henry yawned, happy to comply. Regina doubted he had even really been awake. Still, she jumped when she felt his hand land on her shoulder as he shifted back into Emma. He grabbed at her expensive blouse but she didn’t mind at all; it felt like he was literally reaching out to her and the redemption in that single motion was enough to fry the last of Regina’s already shot nerves. She laughed as softly as she could, lifting her head slowly from Emma’s shoulder to indicate she wasn’t moving away in a panic. Her laugh died slowly in the back of her throat as she met Emma’s emotion filled eyes. The blonde woman was smiling when she was finally able to look at her and Regina smiled back.

“I don’t know how to do this.” Regina confessed and Emma’s smile widened. She scrounged her face in a way that indicated that she had no idea either; something incredibly comforting to Regina.

“I’m willing to try and figure it out together…?” Emma eventually answered and Regina felt her heart soar with joy and hope—something so dangerous she felt the panic rise again. Still, she nodded her agreement and Emma smiled. When she pulled Regina down again, the panic subsided and Regina mused that if Emma just kept kissing her, kept touching her, kept being there for her—then she would be alright and maybe, just maybe, this stillness would continue on into the day and the next night and all days and nights that followed. Maybe—just maybe—this stillness would even survive the coming storm and if it didn’t, Regina knew she would have another person to fight for besides her son. She would fight for her, Regina decided, because now she knew how they felt together, she would not be able to live without this feeling.


End file.
